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Crime spree nets Carmel man longer sentence, D.A. says

A Carmel man accused of taking part in a three-county crime spree was sentenced this week to six years in state prison on earlier drug and forgery charges after the spree allegation cost him a shorter sentence.

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Crime spree nets Carmel man longer sentence, D.A. says

Terence Corcoran, tcorcora@lohud.com 10:37 p.m. EDT July 6, 2014

Man had worked out a deal for 6 months in jail; after spree, he got 6 years

Jason Todd Bennett, 35, of Carmel, sentenced to six years in state prison on earlier drug and forgery charges after he was accused of a three-county crime spree while awaiting sentencing. The allegation cost him a shorter sentence.(Photo: Putnam County District Attorney's Office)

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Jason Todd Bennett, 35, of Carmel gets 6 years in prison on drug and forgery charges

While awaiting sentencing, he went on 3-county crime spree, authorities said

The spree allegation negated previous plea deal for just 6 months in jail.

CARMEL – A Carmel man accused of taking part in a three-county crime spree was sentenced last week to six years in state prison on earlier drug and forgery charges after the spree allegation cost him a shorter sentence.

Jason Todd Bennett, 35, was awaiting sentencing in Putnam County Court on drug and forgery charges this year and had worked out a plea deal for a six-month jail term plus probation when he went on the crime spree in Putnam, Westchester and Dutchess counties in which he defrauded several people, Putnam County District Attorney Adam Levy said in a statement.

Bennett sold a car he didn't own to several buyers, falsifying its title, wrote many checks from bank accounts he knew were closed, jumped bail and committed other crimes, Levy said.

Bennett's initial charges stemmed from his purchase of stolen and forged prescriptions for painkillers, and attempt to fill the prescriptions at local pharmacies. When police arrested him, he had over 120 oxycodone pills.

The spree ended in late February when state police spotted his car on the Taconic State Parkway and caught him after a high-speed chase that ended on Interstate 84 in Southeast.

"While we originally requested and would have preferred a sentence that allowed Mr. Bennett the opportunity to address his addiction issues and lead a law-abiding life, he chose to do just the opposite," Levy said. "Therefore, in order to protect the Putnam County community from his continued criminal conduct, Mr. Bennett is going straight to where he belongs — prison."

Bennett was sentenced by Judge James T. Rooney, who granted the request from Chief Assistant District Attorney Lisa Ortolano for the six years. Levy said Bennett still has nearly two dozen criminal matters pending in Putnam and other jurisdictions.